JPS6214457B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a stack fullness detection device for a stacking section that stacks conveyed and sorted mail in, for example, an automatic postal code reading and sorting machine.

Conventionally, as this type of integrated fullness detection device, one shown in FIG. 1, for example, is known. This uses the weight of the letters P accumulated in the accumulation section, for example the accumulation pocket 1, to detect when the accumulation is full by using two detectors, for example micro switches 2 and 3, provided in each pocket 1. It is something. That is, first, the switch 2 detects that the accumulated amount has reached a predetermined number of sheets, and based on the detection signal, the display 4 displays the pockets in which the predetermined number of sheets has been reached. Thereafter, the switch 3 detects that the storage capacity is full, and the detection signal activates the supply stop circuit 5 to stop the supply of letters. In the figure, 6 is a conveyor belt, 7 is a sorting gate, 8 is a letter detector for gate control, and 9 is a gate control circuit.

However, such conventional integrated fullness detection devices require two microswitches (detectors) for each pocket (accumulating section).
For this reason, the more pockets there are, the more microswitches there will be.
Very complex and costly. Furthermore, since the microswitch is fixed in the pocket, its position cannot be easily changed, and therefore the set value for fullness detection cannot be easily changed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to electrically perform fullness detection control based on quantity rather than control based on weight, thereby significantly reducing the number of detectors and making it simple. It is an object of the present invention to provide an integrated fullness detection device that can be configured to reduce costs and also allow the set value for fullness detection to be changed reliably and easily.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 11 denotes a conveyance path, which conveys the letter P that has passed through a postal code reading section (not shown) in the direction of the arrow shown in the figure. At the lower part of the conveyance path 11, there are a plurality of accumulation parts, for example, accumulation pockets 12 ₁
~12 _o are arranged at predetermined intervals. Each of the pockets 12 ₁ to 12 _o is used to sequentially stack and accumulate separated letters P, which will be described later, on backup plates 13 ₁ to 13 _o . The backup plates 13 ₁ to 13 _o are adapted to descend in accordance with the weight of the accumulated letters P. Detectors such as micro switches 14 ₁ to 14 _o are installed at predetermined lower positions in each of the pockets 12 ₁ to 12 _o.
is provided. This switch 14 ₁ ~ 14 _o
are the descending backup plates 13 ₁ to 13 _o
pocket 12 ₁ by being activated by
This is to detect that the number of letters P accumulated within ~12 _o has reached a predetermined number (substantially full). Therefore, each pocket 12 ₁ to 12 _o of the conveyance path 11
In the corresponding parts, there is a sorting gate 1 for sorting the conveyed letter P into corresponding pockets.
5 ₁ to 15 _o are provided. Furthermore, in front of each of the division gates 15 ₁ to 15 _o on the conveyance path 11, detectors 16 ₁ to 16 _o are provided to optically detect letters P being conveyed. The output signals of these detectors 16 ₁ to 16 _o are respectively supplied to a gate control circuit 17, and the gate control circuit 17 is also supplied with a classification designation code from the reading section (not shown). This gate control circuit 17
The supplied classification designation code and detector 16 ₁ ~
16 _o output signal, the corresponding pocket 1
2 ₁ to 12 _o segment gates 15 ₁ to 15 _o are driven and controlled, respectively. Here, the sorting designation code is a code signal that specifies the pocket in which the letter P is to be sorted, and is output in accordance with the postal code read from the reading section.

Further, the output signals of the switches 14 ₁ to 14 _o are supplied to the display section 18 and the address designation circuit 19, respectively. The display unit 18 is provided with output signals from the switches 14 ₁ to 14 _o to display that the number of accumulated letters P in the corresponding pocket has reached a predetermined number (substantially full). Further, the classification designation code is also supplied to the address designation circuit 19. The addressing circuit 19 is a circuit that specifies an address of a RAM (random access memory) 20. In other words, the RAM 20 is configured in each pocket 12 ₁ to 1.
2 _o respectively, and these addresses A ₁ to _{A o} are connected to the switch 14 _.
The address is designated by an output signal of ₁ to 14 _o and a supplied classification designation code, and the contents of the designated address are supplied to the adder 21. The adder 21 adds "1" to the contents of the specified address supplied from the RAM 20, supplies the addition result to the comparator 22, and stores (updates) the corresponding specified address in the RAM 20 again. be. The comparator 22 is a circuit that compares the output of the adder 21 and the output of the setting circuit 23, and outputs a signal when the two match. Further, the setting circuit 23 has switches 14 ₁ to 14 _o connected to the pocket 1.
After detecting that the number of letters P accumulated within 2 ₁ to 12 _o has reached a predetermined number, this circuit sets the standard number of letters P that must be accumulated to be considered full. The output signal of the comparator 22 is then supplied to the supply stop circuit 24 as an integrated full detection signal.
The supply stop circuit 24 is a circuit that, when a signal is output from the comparator 22, stops the operation of a letter supply unit (not shown) and also activates the alarm 25.

Next, the operation in such a configuration will be explained. For example, when the sorting machine operates now, letters are sequentially supplied one by one from a supply section (not shown) and pass through a reading section (not shown). The letter P that has passed through this reading section is sent to the pockets 12 ₁ to 12 _o on the conveyance path 11.
It is being transported towards. On the other hand, a classification designation code corresponding to the passing letter P is output from the reading section and supplied to the gate control circuit 17. Thereby, the gate control circuit 17 selects the classification gates 15 ₁ to 15 of the corresponding pockets 12 1 to 12 _o based on the classification designation code and the output signals of the detectors 16 ₁ to _{16 o} .
15 _o is driven and controlled, and the letters P being conveyed are sorted into predetermined pockets. That is, for example, if the classification designation code is a code that designates pocket ₁₂₁ , and the corresponding letter P is a code that designates pocket 121,
When detected at ₆₁ , the sorting gate ₁₅₁ is driven, so that the letter P is sorted and accumulated in the pocket ₁₂₁ . In this way, the letters P are sorted and accumulated in each of the pockets 12 ₁ to 12 _o . And each pocket 12 ₁ ~ 1
The backup plates 13 ₁ to 13 _o of 2 _o are lowered according to the weight of the letters P accumulated thereon.

However, now, for example, the number of letters P accumulated in pocket ₁₂₁ has reached a predetermined number, and the number of letters P accumulated in pocket 121 has reached a predetermined number.
4 When detected by ₁ , the detection signal is displayed on the display 18.
is supplied to This will cause the display to indicate pocket 1.
2 Displays that the number of accumulated letters P in ₁ has reached a predetermined number (substantially full) and notifies the operator of this fact.
Further, the detection signal from the switch ₁₄₁ is also supplied to the addressing circuit 19. Therefore,
In this state, when a classification designation code specifying pocket ₁₂₁ is output from the reading section and the classification designation code is supplied to the address designation circuit 19, the address designation circuit 19 reads the address corresponding to the classification designation code in the RAM 20. For example, if A ₁ is specified, the contents of the specified address A ₁ are sent to the adder 2.
Supply to 1. The adder 21 receives the specified address above.
`` ₁ '' is added to the contents of A 1 and the addition result is supplied to the comparator 22 and is again stored in the specified address A ₁ of the RAM 20 . That is, in the initial state, each address of RAM20
All of A ₁ to _{A o} are "0", so in this case, the addition result of the adder 21 is "1", which is stored in the designated address A ₁ of the RAM 20. By repeating the above operation every time the same classification designation code is output, the above address
The contents of _A1 are updated sequentially as "1" → "2" → "3" →...

The comparator 22 compares the output of the adder 21 and the output of the setting circuit 23, and outputs a signal when the two match, and this output signal is supplied to the supply stop circuit 24 as an integrated full detection signal. Ru. When this happens, the supply stop circuit 24 stops the operation of the letter supply section (not shown) and notifies the operator of this with the alarm 25. Here, when the operator removes the letter P from the pocket ₁₂₁ to release the full state, the switch ₁₄₁ no longer outputs the detection signal. As a result, the display contents of the display 18 are cleared, and the address designating circuit 19 clears the contents of the corresponding address _A1 of the RAM 20 to "0".

In the above embodiment, the setting circuit 23 sets the standard number of letters P in each pocket 12 ₁ to 12 _o as a set value for determining how many letters P must be accumulated to make the pocket full after the number of letters P accumulated in the pocket reaches a predetermined number. is set, but the number is not limited to this, and for example, the number of sheets may be set for each of the pockets 12 ₁ to 12 _o . In this case, each value may be stored in memory using, for example, a ROM. Also,
Although the number of letters is counted by the addressing circuit 19, RAM 20 and adder 21,
The count is not limited to this, and a normal counter circuit may be used for counting, for example. Furthermore, although the case has been described in which the application is applied to the stacking section that collects mail items in an automatic postal code reading and sorting machine, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be similarly implemented to the stacking section that collects other transported items. Of course.

As detailed above, according to the present invention, it is detected that the number of articles accumulated in the accumulation section has reached a predetermined amount,
This detection signal is used to count the number of articles that will be stacked in the stacking section after that, and when the count matches the set value, a stacking full detection signal is output, so electrical control can detect when the stacking is full. I can,
This makes it possible to significantly reduce the number of detectors, reduce costs with a simple configuration, and also allow the setting value for full detection to be changed reliably and easily, and the effect is particularly noticeable as the number of accumulation parts increases. An integrated fullness detection device can be provided.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a conventional integrated fullness detection device, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. P...Letter (article), 11...Conveyance path, 12 ₁
~12 _o ...Accumulation part (pocket), 14 ₁ ~14 _o
...Detector, 15 ₁ to 15 _o ...Division gate, 1
7...Gate control circuit, 18...Display device, 19...
...Addressing circuit, 20...RAM, 21...
Adder, 22... Comparator, 23... Setting circuit.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A stacking section that sequentially stacks the transported articles, a detector installed in this stacking section that detects and outputs a signal when the number of articles accumulated therein reaches a predetermined number, and a detector that outputs a signal from the detector. a counting means for counting the number of articles to be stacked in the stacking section after a signal is output; and a setting means for setting the number of articles that can be stacked in the stacking section after the signal is output from the detector; An accumulation full detection device comprising: a comparator that compares the count by the counting means with a set value of the setting means and outputs an accumulation full detection signal based on the comparison result.